Battery Help!

I am in need of a new cranking battery for a Mercury Optimax 225. Does anyone have a recommendation? Or is this basically a Ford vs. Chevy debate?

Any help would be appreciated.

John

IMO its a ford/chevy/import debate. Need to find one that will crank that big sucker for sure, but then I think periodic maint is the best thing for any brand. I've had good luck with walmart brand batteries, both crankin' and TM, but maint is the best thing for all batteries. Look to see what the warranties are vs the cost. There are just a few makers of batteries, different labels and components to some extent are the differences imo. GL

what jimp said, just make sure it has the cranking power you need

I am using a 1000 cold cranking Duracell from Sams club. It may be for a Ford, but 84 month warranty and a good price.

Watch the mfg date on batterys from the Interstate dealer in Murray. All dealers will share with you the date. I bought two that were over a year old and one of them would not take the first charge.

I have been using Interstate for 10+ years and have had only one problem.

great thanks for the suggestions guys.

john

Quote:

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Originally Posted by chuckauten

Watch the mfg date on batterys from the Interstate dealer in Murray. All dealers will share with you the date. I bought two that were over a year old and one of them would not take the first charge.

I have been using Interstate for 10+ years and have had only one problem.

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Chuck, that might be why the guy at Interstate in Murray was so quick to trade batteries with me last summer. I've had nothing but problems with both of them since.

Mostly comes down to the warranty. Walmart Everstart brand and AutoZone Duralast brand are both made by Johnson Controls and are pretty much the same price...AutoZone had the superior warranty the last time I bought batteries and they're all I have onboard now with their 3 year prorated warranty.

Thanks everyone. I ended up with 2 series 31 trojan batteries for the trolling motor and a blue top Optima 31 for the cranking battery (and electronics). Hopefully, i'll get alot of years out of them all. Never realized there were so many options out there.

John

I went to Batteries Plus and told the owner what I was putting the battery in and I wanted the battery with the most cranking amps. I got one that is used to start semis. It was like $120 or something. That was two years ago and still doing good.